Riverfront Pizza Is a Waterside Respite

Riverfront Pizzeria Bar & Grill. Photo by Cari Taylor-Carlson.

If you have come to Lakeshore State Park from the Third Ward on Erie Street, then you have traversed past the Riverfront Pizzeria Bar & Grill. I mention this because the restaurant is a fine place to start and finish a stroll around the park. On a warm fall day, it is also a prime site for a meal on the patio that faces the river where you will be entertained by an endless stream of barges, kayaks, and an assortment of pleasure boats.

Friends and I enjoyed two noon meals under umbrellas where we enjoyed watching pedestrians stroll past our table as well as a mighty tugboat slowly moving a barge downriver.

Unfortunately, the wood-fired pizza was temporarily unavailable, likely due to the late summer heat. However, there were more than enough pizza choices which they list as MKE Style Pizza to satisfy your appetite. If you can imagine it, you will likely find it among the many pizza choices on the menu, and if you don’t find what you want, ask, because there are endless possibilities here.

The MKE Special tops the list with cheese, sausage, mushrooms, and onions. It’s followed by the Taco (red sauce, refried beans, ground beef, mozzarella, cheddar, lettuce, tomato, black olives and tortilla chips). If you want more, top it off with sour cream and salsa. You can also go international with Thai Chicken, the Mediterranean, or the exotic Hawaiian Pizza. There are more and if you can’t find the combination you want, check the bottom of the menu and customize your very own pizza.

My Blanco, topped with garlic, olive oil and four cheeses was a delicious mix, basic yet complex thanks to the blended mozzarella, parmesan, romano, and ricotta. It came to the table hot and melty; the nine-inch size was perfect for a leisurely lunch al fresco.

My companion’s Peyton’s Pasta, house-made pesto tossed with angel hair pasta, was topped with two large meatballs. Everything about this dish tasted light and fresh, from the pesto and the angel hair to the meatballs that appeared heavy but, due to the right balance of pork, beef, and breadcrumbs, were light and quickly devoured. The accompanying garlic bread was buttery, and like the rest of the meal, prepared seconds before it came to the table.

The non-alcoholic Riverwest Stein surprised us. I couldn’t confidently tell the difference from the traditional version, it was that good. You will also find a complete menu of bottled and draft beers, ciders and seltzers.

The other entrees we enjoyed on the sunny deck left no doubt that the chefs at Riverfront Pizzeria take care in the flavors and the presentation of each dish. Both the Cobb Salad and the Chicken Fajita Salad had abundant juicy strips of grilled chicken and both salads turned out to be hearty enough for a substantial lunch entree.

You don’t have to come on a Friday to get your seafood taco fix. They are available every day. Crispy cod or shrimp are served in corn tortillas with pickled slaw and chipotle mayo. My companion ordered shrimp and was served three tacos, each loaded with four large shrimp, a generous portion, along with crispy fries.

If you want a sandwich, you have four choices: Open-Faced Meatball, Italian Beef, Chicken Parmesan or Buffalo Chicken. In addition to Peyton’s Pasta with Pesto, there are many pasta choices, Chicken Parmesan over angel hair, Fettuccini Alfredo, and Shrimp Diavolo over penne to mention a few.

When you open the drink menu, you will see a list of appetizers including bruschetta, wonton-wrapped mozzarella with a side of warm marinara, hand-breaded eggplant strips and the Sean Connery (cheese, meat, olives, fruit, jam and crostinis).

For your weekend brunch, you can have Chilaquiles, French Toast or Pizza for Breakfast topped with scrambled eggs.

The dessert list is short and only available if you dine in. It’s on my list for another time because warm doughnuts drizzled with Nutella served with cream and seasonal berries sounds like a euphoric way to finish a meal at this riverside restaurant.

If you think Riverfront Pizzeria is just one more pizza joint, then you want to check it out. It’s so much more, and it’s all good.

On The Menu

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The Rundown

• Location: 509 E. Erie St.
• Phone: 414-277-1800
• Hours: 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tue-Thu, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Fri-Sat, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sun
• Neighborhood: Historic Third Ward
• Website: http://mkeriverfront.com/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/Riverfrontpizza
• UM Rating: 3.5 stars (average of Yelp, Trip Advisor and Zomato)